Spirited Away (2001)

Rating: 9/10

"There must be some mistake! None of these pigs are my parents!"

It's not many times that I will sit down to watch anime feature films, but with this one I made the exception. The film is 'Spirited Away' and for 2hrs, we are being asked by the Studio Ghibli to sit back and get carried away in a mesmerizing journey. First time I watched this was back in 2003. And it literally took my breath away.

This film tells the story of Chihiro. "After she's forced to move to the suburbs with her family, Chihiro, a 10-year old girl wanders into a world ruled by gods, witches, and monsters; where humans are changed into animals; and a bathhouse for these creatures." (www.imdb.com)

This was the first film I've ever watched by world acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki, and surely wouldn't be the last one as well. To express my overwhelming desire to want to live in the world that Miyazaki so brilliantly created would be an understatement.

This animated feature film holds high its sceptre as on of the best animated films of all time, due to its unlimited length of imagination, its overwhelming spirit to show go beyond the boundaries and with a plot that can simply attracted even the more demanding anime-viewers.

The freshness of the story is not only addressed to young audiences, as this film also talks about moral messages that rule our 'adult' society today. The issues at hand begin from the theme of greed and gluttony up to the themes of envy and how to surpass everything negative that life may through in your way, and to try to be as authentic and as honest as when you first start a journey as such as Chihiro's.

An overwhelming animated experience. This is why I recommend this film. It will fill you up, bedazzle you and then spit you up like a hurricane with a sweetness you will not be expecting.

For those who will indulge to roam around in Chihiro's world for the two-hour length of the feature, I hope you let also your imagination run wild. That's all you need to have when you sit to watch this.


Spirited Away (2001)

The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship

Good evening to you all!

This is my first blog post as a reviewing artist. I have always loved the arts field ever since I can remember myself doing a sing-along number from a musical or a theatre act. Ever since I was a small kid I found myself hooked on the once known in Hollywood 'the talkies', aka films. Today, I can literally lock myself in a dark room watching films for days and days, non-stop, experiencing emotions and feelings of another dimension.

When my time came to decide into what career pathway I would follow, the answer was crystal clear; film, theatre, literature.

My life since the time I was 18 years old, led me on to gain experience in filmmaking; a land of dreams. I am a holder of a BA Hons in Drama & English and an MA holder of Film & Television Production. But my studies, will never be complete unless I reply to my true calling; writing.

Somewhere along the lines of trying to break into an impossible industry, the entertainment industry, I've always felt that I was more of a backstage person rather than a centre-stage one. My vice was always speaking in public. But this however, led me to acknowledge that there was a field I could be good at; writing about films, theatre and books.

So, with the guidance of some wonderful friends and an encouragement from my blogging stratosphere, I've decided to begin a blog with my reviews in film, theatre and literature.

I will try to keep a non-literary language, keep it down a notch, since this is not only a literature-based blog. I am happy to take on board any views, suggestions and opinion-nets on any material I may present in this blog. Everyone is welcome to participate, one way or another.

I hope people will get to enjoy this blog, benefit from it (in case you find yourself stranded on a Friday night with your mates and have no idea what movie to watch, this could/would be a blog to turn to) and gain some valuable insight into this magical world of film, theatre and literature.

I salute you all film junkies or simply people who love a good flick. I will be reviewing my first film tomorrow so keep in tune.

May this be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Casablanca (1942)